Becoming a leader--what it takes

As a strategist, advising companies on business strategy, I must consider management's ability to lead the organization, as the best strategy will fail if managment is unable to clearly articulate the vision and provide staff with defined directives.  Additionally, as the Chair of Pepperdine University Leadership Council I  come into contact with business students, who strive to develop the skills needed to successfully lead an organization.

Given the importance of leadership skills, I invested some time pondering the answer to this crucial question--"What does it take to successfully lead an organization".

-I welcome your thoughts and additions.


A leader

 
A leader is able to create a vision, clearly articulate direction, and inspire others by obtaining commitment and getting people to take action.

Leaders show such a conviction in their vision that they are able to empower others to desire inclusion in the efforts.

A leader has the ability to describe the goals of the vision in such a way that each participant fully understands the mission, the purpose, the needed steps and their personal accountability. With such clarity, the leader can encourage individualism while knowing the collective effort will be fundamentally true to the ultimate goals.

 

Personal values

In order to be a leader a person must possess a strong sense of identity, self-worth and personal values. These three character traits will provide a leader with integrity, compassion, and openness.

A sense of identity and integrity will promote fairness.

Self-worth and compassion provides the strength to stand against opposing views, especially when it is needed to stand up for your beliefs.

Openness and commitment to personal values will allow a leader to make the tough choices and support those less advantaged.



 

What did you think of this article?




Trackbacks
  • No trackbacks exist for this post.
Comments

  • 11/23/2010 10:14 AM wheelchair accessible vehicles wrote:
    A lot of what makes a good leader is confidence...or self-confidence. A person who is meek cannot make a good leader (and I define meek very differently from humility, I do not consider them to the synonymous). I know that there is more to a good leader than just confidence, but I think that it is one of the biggest or essential factors in what makes a good leader. ...and I believe that in your brief article what you wrote covers confidence without actually saying the word.
    Reply to this
    1. 11/23/2010 11:43 AM LW and Associates wrote:
      I fully agree with your statement...and confidence often comes from experience.
      Reply to this
Leave a comment

 Enter the above security code (required)

 Name

 Email (will not be published)

 Website

Your comment is 0 characters limited to 3000 characters.